Victim or Victor?
China's Olympic Odyssey

Resurgent nationalists are counting on a torrent of gold medals to erase centuries of humiliation. Will the Beijing Games complete a restoration of Chinese greatness or arrogance?

By

Ian Buruma

Updated June 7, 2008 11:59 p.m. ET

For many centuries China thought it was the center of the world, and it expected foreigners to share this view. Foreign dignitaries were received at the imperial court, but only as vassals paying tribute to the Son of Heaven. This perception is now obsolete, of course, even though Chairman Mao often behaved like an emperor toward his foreign guests, but Chinese still care deeply about national honor. "Face," for want of a better word, still counts. This is why the Olympic Games are so important, as well as the events...